San Francisco Ballet Cancels Kennedy Center Tour Amid Backlash

Divided patrons and calls for transparency follow the ballet company's decision to forgo performances at the Trump-controlled venue.

Published on Mar. 9, 2026

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After the San Francisco Ballet scrapped its planned Kennedy Center performances in May, the company faced a divided response from its patrons. While some praised the decision as a redemption, others felt it was "too little too late" without a public statement or direct response to complaints. The cancellation highlights the tension between the ballet's leadership and its audience, who see the organization as a cultural representative of San Francisco. The ballet's silence on the financial and other impacts of the cancellation also drew criticism, with experts noting that transparency is an ideal the nonprofit sector often falls short of.

Why it matters

The San Francisco Ballet's decision to cancel its Kennedy Center tour speaks to the complex relationship between arts organizations and their local communities. As a prominent cultural institution, the ballet's actions are seen as reflecting on the city itself, leading to a sense of ownership and accountability from its patrons that goes beyond a typical vendor-customer dynamic. The backlash also underscores the challenges nonprofits face in balancing their artistic vision with public expectations of transparency and responsiveness.

The details

The San Francisco Ballet scrapped its planned May performances at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. after a petition urging the cancellation garnered nearly 7,500 signatures. The petition cited the center's takeover by former President Donald Trump, who appointed himself board chair and renamed the venue after himself, as an "endorsement" of his "divisive policies." While some patrons, like Daniel Detorie who started the petition, praised the ballet's decision as restoring their "joy" for the company, others felt the move came too late without a public statement or direct response to complaints. The divided response highlights the tension between the ballet's leadership, which has artistic autonomy, and its audience, which sees the organization as a cultural representative of San Francisco.

  • The San Francisco Ballet scrapped its planned May performances at the Kennedy Center.
  • The petition urging the ballet to cancel its Kennedy Center tour garnered nearly 7,500 signatures.

The players

Daniel Detorie

A San Francisco resident who started the petition urging the San Francisco Ballet to cancel its Kennedy Center performances.

Tamara Rojo

The Artistic Director of the San Francisco Ballet.

Branislav Henselmann

The Executive Director of the San Francisco Ballet.

Barbara Gersh

A San Francisco subscriber to the San Francisco Ballet.

Isaac Hernández

A former principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet who performed at the Kennedy Center last month with American Ballet Theatre.

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What they’re saying

“Ballet has always been my happy place. When I sit down at the (War Memorial) Opera House for a performance… all my cares are gone.”

— Daniel Detorie, San Francisco resident (San Francisco Chronicle)

“I'm definitely in the too little too late camp.”

— Ann Rudorf, Pacifica resident (San Francisco Chronicle)

“The Ballet is a cultural representative for San Francisco, and its actions represent us in a way that a corporation based here does not.”

— Barbara Gersh, San Francisco subscriber (San Francisco Chronicle)

“I feel like it is part of our job to be able to present art in all contexts, in all places, and to be able to open our art forms. During complicated times, it sometimes takes valor to go against someone's opinion.”

— Isaac Hernández, Former San Francisco Ballet principal dancer (San Francisco Chronicle)

“To say nothing underestimates the intelligence of people who really want to support artists. The non-transparency … misses an opportunity to educate the world about what kinds of tensions and contradictions big arts organizations are actually holding right now in this moment of cascading crises.”

— Sarah Wilbur, Choreographer and associate professor at Duke University (San Francisco Chronicle)

What’s next

The San Francisco Ballet has not indicated any specific next steps regarding the Kennedy Center cancellation, though experts suggest the company could use this as an opportunity to increase transparency and engage more directly with its patrons.

The takeaway

The San Francisco Ballet's decision to cancel its Kennedy Center tour has highlighted the complex relationship between arts organizations and their local communities. While the move was praised by some patrons, the ballet's lack of public communication and transparency around the decision has led to a divided response, underscoring the challenges nonprofits face in balancing artistic vision with public accountability.